Climate Change and Inequalities in Political Entry: Evidence from Brazil
With António Valentim.
Overview
The repercussions of climate change, along with the associated events, often exacerbate existing political, economic, and social inequalities.
This study delves into the influence of extreme weather events on the decision to pursue a political career in Brazil, a nation that encompasses more than half of the Amazon rainforest. While the effects of extreme weather events frequently exhibit gender disparities, the distribution of relief packages may heighten the prevalence of less qualified and more rent-seeking politicians. Leveraging a newly compiled dataset encompassing extreme weather events and candidate profiles in Brazil (1991-2022), we employ a difference-in-differences design to examine the impact of such events on the gender and quality of political candidates.
Subsequently, we utilize micro data on federal relief transfers, women's market integration, and survey data to explore potential mechanisms. By offering insights into the consequences of extreme weather events on candidate pools, our research contributes to our understanding of climate change politics, political inequalities, and their intersection.
My Work
Selected Research
My research has been published or is forthcoming in Global Environmental Politics and Journal of Global Security Studies, and other journals.
More projects
working paper
Oil Windfalls and a Conditional Political Resource Curse: Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Brazil
Do natural resource windfalls affect democratic outcomes? We argue that the effect of such revenues on democratic outcomes is conditioned by the strength of political institutions. Where institutions are weak, natural resource revenues are diverted towards clientelistic practices, which increase incumbent reelection…
Read more
working paper
Holding Ground: The Resilience of Protected Areas under Institutional Weakening
The conservation value of protected areas is dynamic and can rise sharply when environmental governance weakens and deforestation expands. Protected areas are a cornerstone of global conservation policy, yet those located in remote regions are often view as inefficient because they protected forests under little…
Read more
working paper
Costless Defection: How Counter-Rhetoric Neutralizes Climate Shaming
In Western democracies, foreign climate shaming has been shown to impose audience costs on noncompliant leaders. The Paris Agreement depends on peer pressure rather than sanctions to secure compliance. In Western democracies, foreign climate shaming has been shown to impose audience costs on noncompliant leaders,…
Read more
working paper
Climate Change and the Shadow of the Future
Young people are the ones closer to experiencing these imminent consequences. Despite this, age has been overlooked as a significant explanatory variable in the literature on climate change opinions. This article seeks to fill this gap. We synthesize different studies across psychology, social sciences, and biology…
Read more
Contact Me
Let's Talk
If you are interested in knowing more about any of my projects or think we have similar interests, please feel free to contact me.
